Burying beetles as a model organism to study sex differences in parental care.

Abstract

In species where both sexes care for offspring, one parent-generally the female-typically provides more care than the other. While current theory offers broad predictions on the evolution of sex differences in parental care, it remains unclear whether ecological factors, such as short-term environmental variation and the intrinsic state of parents, also influence the size of existing asymmetries between parents. Here, I highlight how recent work on burying beetles (Nicrophorus sp.), a now well-established taxon to study biparental care, has contributed to research on sex differences in parenting. Although female burying beetles provide more care than males, the extent of this asymmetry is context-dependent as each sex constantly readjusts care depending on the surrounding environment and own state. Nevertheless, despite variation in the magnitude of the sex differences, there are still clear patterns of care specific to each species, highlighting the importance of the evolutionary history. Finally, the presence of sex differences presumably has consequences for the efficiency of parental care and can affect offspring performance. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the life-history and environmental conditions driving sex differences in parenting, we need more natural history research on the less commonly studied Nicrophorus species and more work examining behavioural responses to rapid environmental changes in all taxa. Addressing these gaps will contribute to our understanding of how sexual conflict over care is resolved and how biparental cooperation persists despite asymmetries between caring parents.